Liverpool designer David Huglin boxes clever with a new collection of men’s underwear

David Huglin owner of Burtonwode - a company that makes boxer shorts for men.

Share

Get What's On updates directly to your inbox

Thank you for subscribing!

Could not subscribe, try again laterInvalid Email

UNDERWEAR, like socks and ties, traditionally hardly ranks as the most imaginative gift for a man at Christmas or any other time of the year.

But artistic Liverpool entrepreneur David Huglin has designs on changing that.

He wants to inject some much-needed attention and flair into creating men’s boxer shorts and he’s launched his own fashion line to do it.

Fed up with the lack of choice in the men’s underwear department and a mass of boring plain colours or tacky novelty patterns, David has designed a 16-pair collection using prints of his own artwork.

“I thought that men had been considered and catered for with most other apparel, but not underwear,” he explains. “Women get so much choice when it comes to theirs and they have dedicated manufacturers making things with care and passion.

“I didn’t feel that was there for men so I wanted to create something which had love put into it basically.

“For a lot of men, underwear has been more of a functional thing, but I don’t think that’s the case for everyone and for those who don’t feel that way there was a need in the market and I wanted to do something to address that.”

David, a former King David student now based in London, set up his company Burtonwode in April.

“I originally wanted to call it Burtonwood after the service station,” he laughs, “but then burtonwood.co.uk and burtonwood.com were both already taken so I thought I’d just change it a little bit. I wanted that if you were from the north west you got the joke, but if you weren’t it was still a good name.

“And I have Liverpool sewn onto every label because I want it to be seen as a Liverpool brand. The city very much suits our outlook because there’s things like plums and cherries on the boxes, so it’s meant to be quite witty and cheeky and not taking itself too seriously.”

For the 30-year-old from Woolton, creating his collection of shorts has brought together his interests in art and business.

After studying art history at Edinburgh University, he took a foundation course at City & Guilds in London where he got into printmaking.

“Although I did art history I never thought of it as a way of getting into art practically, there was no vocational thought behind it, it was really just an interest in the subject,” he says. “But all the time I carried on drawing, and I made sure I drew something every single day because I knew if I didn’t carry on doing it then it would go. It was a self-discipline as much as anything else.”

After graduating, David pursued an art career for five years but became frustrated. “I didn’t feel as if I was getting anywhere with it and I didn’t enjoy doing it for other people,” he explains. “It wasn’t working out so I started looking for other things to do other than the art. I did a sketch of some pyjamas one day and that lead to the train of thought which ended with me setting up Burtonwode.”

Much of the inspiration for his first collection has come from his own experience, he adds.

“Because underwear is the first thing you put on in the morning and the last thing you take off at night, you want something that’s good quality and puts you in the right frame of mind from the off.

“I think most men, when they look in their underwear drawer, will have a favourite pair for special days and occasions. I can only speak for myself obviously, but when I go and get a pair sometimes I’ll rummage around and look for particular ones rather than grabbing the first that I see.

“I think in general men do take a lot more care and consideration when it comes to all of their clothes now. The idea that women are interested in fashion and men aren’t is almost obsolete so, as well as women buying the boxer shorts for men, I really want the product to be something which men buy for themselves.”

Most of his shorts feature a repeated pattern designed by David himself, and he admits he would nearly always favour a quirky print over plain.

“I really don’t like boring plain boxers, and given the choice between plain and some kitschy nonsense I’d definitely go for the kitsch, but the main thing is quality and fit. The worst underwear crime is badly made and badly fitted.”

So, what about blokes who think it’s OK to hang on to their boxers until they’re falling apart or, worse still, not pop on a clean pair every morning?

“Oh I would like to one day bring out reversible underwear so they could get double the use,” jokes David. “That’s a really horrible thought isn’t it?”

David’s Burtonwode collection is designed, printed and stitched in the UK and each pair comes in a presentation box – £26, available from www.burtonwode.com